The European Commission will unveil its draft regulation on fluorinated gases (F-gases) within days, ahead of a meeting of the Montreal Protocol in Geneva where countries will aim to agree global curbs on hydroflurocarbons (HFCs).
The commissioner did not disclose the details of the proposal, but said that bans on specific uses would be proposed if affordable, efficient and safe alternatives to climate-unfriendly HFCs are available in the EU.
She believes such alternatives are available for "many if not most" applications, echoing the position of the natural refrigerant sector, the German environment agency and a consultancy report prepared for the commission last year.
But a series of bans on HFCs in new domestic, commercial and industrial refrigeration systems taking effect by 2020 – as set out in a draft version of the proposal – remain most controversial. Bans on industrial applications in particular are said to be opposed by parts of the refrigeration sector.
Two other bans on equipment pre-charged with HFCs and the use of refrigerants with a high global warming potential (GWP) during the servicing or maintenance of refrigeration equipment are also attracting criticism.
But the natural refrigerant sector represented at ATMOsphere conference insists that the bans should stay and will drive innovation. Mikkel Sørensen from the Danish environment agency said his country's experience of banning all HFC use in 2007 – with a few derogations – shows it can be done without harming industry.
F-gases are the only greenhouse gases still on the rise in Europe, Ms Hedegaard reminded delegates. As well as in Geneva, the commission wants action on HFCs at the annual UN climate conference in Doha, as part of a ministerial round table on short-term measures to tackle climate change.
Another commission official added that F-gas restrictions should not conflict with efficiency requirements in eco-design rules for professional refrigeration. If there is evidence there might be a conflict – because a climate-friendlier refrigerant is less efficient – the issue will be looked at and taken into account, he said.
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